FLAMINGO

NAME: Flamingo
COUNTY: Monroe
ROADS: 2WD
GRID: 4
CLIMATE: hot and buggy most of the year
BEST TIME TO VISIT: winter, the colder the better 		COMMENTS: No residents, this is a true ghost. Townsite is located in Everglades National Park. From the east Park entrance (near Florida City) head down the main road 38 miles to present-day Flamingo (this is a marina and campground area) At the far end of Campground Loop C is the Coastal Prairie Trail. This is a hiking trail only, no vehicles. The old town of Flamingo is approx 4 1/2 miles down the trail, near Slagle ditch. Beware, the trail may not be well marked or easy to follow in places, and may be partially underwater during the summer. Take caution and be prepared, wildlife may be encountered along the way.
REMAINS: coquina rock building foundation, 1928 Geodetic Marker, possibly more foundations out in the brush
Flamingo was first settled around 1892, although Tequesta Indians had lived in the area prior to that. Duncan Brady, a New Englander, was one of the first residents. The town received the name Flamingo in 1893 when a post office was established, with Howell Low as postmaster. Back then flamingos could be seen along the coast in large numbers. Daily life there in the Everglades could be rough going. Naturalist Leverett White Brownell visited Flamingo in 1893, describing the village of 38 shacks on stilts as infested with fleas and mosquitos. He claimed to have seen an oil lamp extinguished by a cloud of mosquitos. He also stated that flea powder was the "staff of life" and that the cabins were thickly sooted from the use of smudge pots. By 1900 about 50 families lived there and it had a Monroe County school. Early settlers included the Irwins, Roberts, and Douthits. Fishing, farming, charcoal making and plume hunting (hunting exotic birds for their feathers) were the area's economy. Plume hunting brought the people over to Flamingo and led to its downfall. Audubon warden Guy Bradley was killed in 1905 by plume hunters near the town. Public rage over the murder directly led to federal legislation outlawing the practice. The post office closed in 1909 and by 1910 only three houses remained occupied. Flamingo had a brief resurgence during prohibition, becoming a haven for outlaw moonshiners. When Everglades National Park was created in 1947, the Flamingo site became part of the park. Submitted by: Jim Pike


Flamingo area along the Coastal Prairie Trail
Courtesy Jim Pike


Flamingo townsite area
Courtesy Jim Pike


Building remains, Flamingo
Courtesy Jim Pike


Building foundation and partial wall remains
Courtesy Jim Pike


Close-up of coquina shellrock used for the building
Courtesy Jim Pike


Along Coastal Prairie Trail --possible site of the Flamingo school or post office
Courtesy Jim Pike


Close-up of actual Coastal Prairie Trail, which partially follows and old roadbed to the townsite
Courtesy Jim Pike


1928 Geodetic Marker at Flamingo site
Courtesy Jim Pike


Flamingo, Stephen Roberts home, 1900.  Courtesy of the Florida Archives


John Douthet home, Flamingo 1916.  Courtesy of the Florida Archives


Flamingo abandoned house, 1925.  Courtesy of the Florida Archives


Guy Bradley memorial, formerly at his grave on Cape Sable, now at present-day Flamingo near the marina


Gladesman Glen Simmons home in Flamingo, 1947
Courtesy Jim Pike

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